


Walk Into the Hunger

by Hoothootmotherf_ckers



Category: The Adventure Zone (Podcast), The Lord of the Rings - All Media Types
Genre: Gen, Lord of the Rings crossover, can you IMAGINE what would go down if elrond met taako holy shit, thanks to the TFW discord for help with characters!, yeah this is not going to be the last you see of this
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-08-26
Updated: 2018-08-26
Packaged: 2019-07-02 15:57:02
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,484
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/15799806
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Hoothootmotherf_ckers/pseuds/Hoothootmotherf_ckers
Summary: The council of Elrond meets to decide the fate of Faerun.Because everyone needs a TAZ/Lord of the Rings crossover, right?





	Walk Into the Hunger

Leaves gently fall as Elrond surveys his guests. He has gathered representatives from across the land, for this is a danger faced by all, not just elf, man, or dwarf. Even the hobbits, isolated pacifists though they may usually be, have been thrown into the forefront of danger. But there’s no going back now. Sighing, he faces his audience.

“Strangers from distant lands, friends of old. You have been summoned here to answer the threat of the Hunger. Faerun stands upon the brink of destruction. None can escape it. You will unite or you will fall. Each race is bound to this fate – this one doom.” He gestures at the pedestal his visitors face. “Bring forth the Gauntlet, Lup.”

A hobbit woman strides forward from the back of the crowd, where she’d been hidden due to her short stature. Despite her height, she stands proud as if daring any of the onlookers to question her. Her hands, which shake as she places a golden plated glove on the pedestal before her, are the only indicator of her underlying fear. 

As the woman returns to her seat, another’s voice rises from the crowd. “So it is true…”

The speaker, an elegant, dark skinned human woman with brilliant white hair, rises and slowly approaches the pedestal. “I dreamt of this. I saw a Light, fragmented across Faerun. I saw this gauntlet, I heard tidings of doom and destruction. But with this…”

Her hand reaches toward the pedestal and Elrond snaps out “Lucretia!” With a jolt, her hand drops. She looks startled, as if she hadn’t quite realized what she’d been doing. As she returns to her seat, shaken, Merle rises.

“The Gauntlet is completely fucking evil. It’s a threat to all planes of existence,” the wizard says firmly. Lucretia stands again to face him.

“It could be, but what if we could use it! A gift to the foes of the Hunger! Why not use this Gauntlet? Long has my organization, the Bureau of Balance, kept the forces of the Hunger at bay. By the blood of our people are your lands kept safe, kept shielded! Give the Bureau the weapon of the enemy. Let us use it against him!” She insists, a fire returned to her eyes.

Another human, a woman with long black hair dotted with pink flowers, stands to face her. She says firmly, “You cannot wield it! None of us can. The Gauntlet answers to the Hunger alone. It has no other master.”

Lucretia snaps back, “And what would a druid know of this matter?”

A third woman, a tall, stocky elf with a fire in her eyes and short dark hair stands to face the two. Her hand tightly grips a crossbow at her side as she says, “This isn’t just any druid! She is Sloane, daughter of Arathorn, and you owe her your allegiance!”

Lucretia goes pale. “This… she is Bane’s heir?”

“And heir to the throne of Goldcliff,” the elf says firmly. Sloane puts one hand to her face.

“Sit down, Killian,” she says, seeming exhausted.

“Goldcliff has no queen. Goldcliff needs no queen,” Lucretia insists, returning to her seat with a sigh.

Merle stands again. “Sloane is right. We cannot use it.” 

Elrond, relieved to be back on track, speaks up. “You have only one choice. The Gauntlet must be destroyed.”

“Well, what are we waiting for?” A slight dwarven woman with electric blue hair rises from beside Killian and lifts a shortsword. Before anyone can stop her, she swings downward with all her might to hit the Gauntlet. She’s knocked back with a cry as the blade shatters and a wave of force emanates from the pedestal. Lup winces in pain as suddenly her mind is filled with the white eyes of the Hunger, staring viciously. When she blinks back her vision and all settles, the gauntlet remains intact in front of her.

Elrond sighs again. “The Gauntlet cannot be destroyed, Carey, daughter of Gloin, by any craft that we here possess. It was made from the Light of Creation. Only there can it be unmade. It must be taken deep into the Hunger’s lands and cast back into the brilliant Light from whence it came.”

The Gauntlet sits before them, so simple yet so threatening, as Elrond continues. “One of you must do this.”

Lucretia sighs. “You can’t just walk into the Hunger. Its black gates are guarded by more than just wraiths and living darkness. There is evil there that does not sleep. And the great Eyes are ever watchful. It is a barren wasteland. I mean, it’s like walking into a black hole. Not with ten thousand men could you do this. It’s impossible!” She sounds exasperated.

Killian stands up. “Have you heard anything Lord Elrond’s fucking said? The Gauntlet has to be destroyed!”

Beside her, Carey stands as well and glares. “And I suppose you think you’re the best one to do it?!”

Lucretia, head in her hands, says, “And if we fail, what then? What happens when the Hunger takes back what is theirs?”

Ignoring her, Carey continues to yell, “I’ll be dead before I see the Gauntlet in the hands of an elf!”

Many members of the circle jump up and begin to shout. Humans bicker with elves, and elves with dwarves, as the contingent of hobbits huddles uncomfortably in the back, hidden away behind some foliage. Well, an awkward huddle - Taako is pulling hard on Magnus’s belt to stop him from leaping into the fray. 

“You idiot, you don’t even know why they’re fighting!” The hobbit hisses. Magnus whines childishly in response.

Merle stands, imposing despite his size. “You get that while we bicker among ourselves, the Hunger’s power grows?! No one can escape it!” 

Lup stares at the Gauntlet, the fight fading to the background of her awareness. It’s whispering something to her, in a language she can’t comprehend, but it sounds angry and yet compelling. With a start, she watches as the entire pedestal is engulfed in flames and the fight around her grows in volume. She knows what she has to do.

She steps forward and calls out, “I will take it! I will take it!”

Everyone stops dead and silence falls, then all present turn to face the hobbit. Merle closes his eyes.

Nervous but determined, Lup continues, “I will take the Gauntlet to the Light. Though… I do not know the way.”

Merle walks to Lup, looking somber. “I will help you bear this burden, Lup Taaco, so long as it is yours to bear.” He’s the only one here who can see eye to eye with her. 

Sloane stands and walks to face the hobbit. “If by my life or death, I can protect you, I will.” She kneels in front of Lup, who is trying to hide her anxiety. The woman continues, “You have my sword.”

Killian walks up beside her. “And you have my crossbow.”

Not to be outdone, Carey rushes up, does a completely unnecessary back handspring, and shouts, “And my knife!”

More hesitantly, Lucretia joins the trio pledging fealty. “You carry the fates of us all, Lup. If it is indeed the will of the Council, my Bureau will see it done,” she says, softly. She fidgets with the silver bracer on her arm. 

With a loud rustle and an exclamation, Barry rushes out of the bushes to stand beside Lup. “Hey! Miss Lup isn’t going anywhere without me!”

Amused, Elrond says, “No indeed, it is hardly possible to separate you even when she is summoned to a secret council and you are not.” Barry flushes but stands firm. 

Taako lets go of Magnus’s belt and both rush out to join Barry. “Wait! We’re coming too!”

Taako says, acting exasperated, “You’d have to send Magnus home tied up in a sack to stop him.” 

“Anyway you need people of intelligence on this sort of mission, quest… thing,” Magnus adds.

“Well, that rules you out, my man,” Taako quips. “Anyway, I’m not leaving my sister behind.”

Lup smiles at him and her other friends, feeling more confident with their support. Nervously, she reaches out her hands to Barry and Taako, who both hold on tight. Merle still looks nervous, but Elrond smiles. He says with an air of drama, “Nine companions… So be it! You shall be the Fellowship of the Ring!” 

The non-hobbits look at each other, nervous but hopeful. They are not friends, they’re barely more than strangers, but they are united buy a common goal. And maybe, together, they can do this. Together, they can destroy the Gauntlet. And maybe, together they can defeat the Hunger. That possibility hangs in the air over their heads, a beautiful bubble of potential.

The moment is broken by Magnus, who cheerily asks, “Great! Where are we going?”

The others stare as Taako collapses into laughter. He wheezes, "Oh, we're _so fucked."_


End file.
